Angry Liberals are Not the Salvation of This Country

Angry Liberals are Not the Salvation of This Country

Chairman’s Corner by Scott McGraw

The tone and tenor of the political discourse in this country is appalling. When did screaming the loudest and drowning out the opinions of others become the best way to reach consensus? This progressive movement has turned politics into a distasteful and chaotic process that will harm this country more than anything. Angry liberals are not the salvation of this country. I would hope that the more sensible Democrats would rise up and bring some sanity back into their party.

Some of the scenes I see on television are reminiscent of the 1960s, with all the protests mixed with violence. They were fighting for equality. The movement had some sensible leaders who saw that violence was not the path to victory. Martin Luther King Jr. spoke of being judged by the content of a man’s character and not to the color of his or her skin. I couldn’t agree with him more.

I can’t really tell what they are fighting for today. I would think equality for the LBGT community, but I can’t tell. It seems everything is about stuff, nowadays. They want bathrooms built in the schools and guns taken away from the citizens. Back in the 1960s, they just wanted to drink from the same water fountain and sit in the same restaurants. There is a marked difference between the movements.

It seems to me like they are fighting for control of money. They want more government money to create jobs. Not better policies to create jobs. More government jobs. That’s probably the difference between our philosophies, Democratic and Republican. The GOP wants policies to allow people and businesses to create jobs in the workforce, where taxes are created and not just spent.

This movement seems to be fueled by the election of Donald Trump. I will admit the election of Trump was quite surprising, but to be shocked at what he is attempting as president is just simply childish. For the past year-and-a-half, we’ve heard Trump talk about a wall, immigration, tax reform, repealing and replacing of Obamacare, etc. His agenda is highly documented and is why he was elected. He struck a chord with voters and he won, fair and square.

And this movement is not just at the national level. We’re dealing with it here in Kalamazoo. Dozens and dozens of these progressive protesters have been swarming the Kalamazoo County Commission meetings to change the votes of the commissioners, proclaiming that democracy has been served.

Well, democracy is not served with a few vocal opinions sway the votes of our elected officials. Our elected officials need to be strong and stand up for what is right and not cave in to these special interests. They need to represent all the people, not just a few vocal individuals.

Being Republican means different things to different people, but we must agree on some basic principles: Low taxes, limited government and free market principals are the basic beliefs all Republicans should subscribe to. I’m not saying you can’t have other beliefs, but these should be the core for our party.

As Republicans, we need to stand up for these beliefs and speak out. Without your voice, these beliefs (and freedoms) will disappear. I am worried that we are becoming complacent since we won this election, controlling the presidency, the House and the Senate. In Michigan, we also control all three branches.

But when we are not united in our core principles, our party is weakened. When we don’t hold our elected officials responsible to these core beliefs, our party is weakened. United, we are stronger. When we debate non-core principles, we are weaker.

It is time for Republicans to stand up and make our voices heard before we are drowned out by a chorus of liberal mobs. Tell your elected officials what you believe in and how you expect them to vote. Our country depends on it.